Michael Updike

Michael Updike creates slate carvings and memorials in marble, slate and granite. He originally started working on slate art as a way to practice his carving skills on old slate shingles. “Slate is kind of an invisible stone,” says Updike. “It is found in our patios, on our roofs, in graveyards and old classrooms. Yet no one really knows what to do with discarded remnants. Since I started making slate art from old roof shingles, many people have said they have a pile of it in their basement or backyard. Marble and granite have a long history of being used as a sculptural material, particularly in monumental sculpture. Slate has flown below the radar and is not a traditional medium, which makes it exciting to work with.” “In Nest, the bird's nest with the eggs defined by negative space is a play on the planar two-dimensional surface being porous and hinting of a third dimension. The nest itself is expressed by a circle of scribbles often going outside and over the edge of the page. Yet there is ambiguity as the viewer wonders: 'Is this a depiction of a deconstructing nest or did the bird make it that way?'” # # # # #